Shackle seam



9, 1966 w. M. BROOKS ETAL 3,265,425

SHACKLE SEAL Filed June 8, 1964 I I @Wg INVENTORS l0 W/A/F/PEQ M Ema (5 /4 i BY 5/60/90, M08526 United States Patent 3,265,426 SHACKLE SEAL Winfred M. Brooks, West Orange, and Sigurd M. Moberg, East Orange, N..I., assignors to E. J. Brooks Company, Newark, N.J., a corporation of New Jersey Filed June 8, 1964, Ser. No. 373,258 4 Claims. (Cl. 292-307) This invention relates to shackle seals such as are employed with hasps to interlock and/ or interseal two parts. Such hasps are of various sizes depending upon the nature of the parts with which they are associated; and shackle seals employed therewith ordinarily are of a size and strength adequate for use with the related hasp. For illustrative purposes, and without limitation thereto, a seal according to the present invention is disclosed herein as one suitable for use to secure an electric meter cover in place upon the main part of the meter.

An important object of this invention is the provision of a readily moldable, one piece shackle seal.

Another important object is the provision of a shackle seal of considerably less weight than prior shackle seals, to minimize costs of shipping them from the manufacturer thereof to the user.

Another important object is the provision of a smaller shackle seal than those hitherto provided; this, with the reduced weight, enabling an actual user to carry a substantial number of them on his person without inconven1ence.

Another important object is the provision of a very inexpensive shackle seal.

The foregoing and other objects are derived from this invention of which a seal according to a preferred embodiment is illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

FIGURE 1 is a side elevational view of the seal according to the mentioned preferred embodiment as applied to a hasp in engagement with a meter cover to hold the latter in place on a meter.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the seal of FIG. 1 as delivered by the manufacturer to the user.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view on the line 33 of FIG. 2; this being largely an end view of the seals body portion.

FIG. 4 is a sectional view of the seals body portion on the line 4-4 of FIG. 3.

FIG. 5 is a view, much like FIG. 4, but showing a portion of the seals shackle after being inserted in said body portion in a leftwardly direction as viewed in this figure.

FIG. 6 is a sectional view of the parts shown in FIG. 5, but after the body portion has been clinched or otherwise deformed to lock the shackle within the body portion.

The illustrated seal comprises a body or body portion 10 and a shackle 12 integral therewith. It is molded of material which is plastic in the sense of being flexible and deformable and capable of retaining a given deformation. The plastic material is preferably molded polypropylene although the seal may be of other plastic material which enables the seal to function as hereinafter explained. Thus, for example, nylon may be used.

The body portion is formed with a bore 14 extending longitudinally therethrough and this bore is optionally, but preferably, beveled or flared outwardly at one end as at 16.

The shackle is circular in cross section and formed with a series of integral locking collars 18, which, optionally but with some advantage, are frusto-conical with the bases of the partial cones all facing in one direction axially away from the free end of the shackle. The thickness of the shackle, apart from the locking collars 18, is somewhat less than the diameter of the bore 14 Patented August 9, 1966 and the locking collars are preferably of slightly greater diameter than the diameter of said bore.

The spaces betweensuccessive locking collars are preferably somewhat less than the length of the body 10; indeed, it is preferred that the collars be so spaced that, when the shackle is inserted in the bore 14, as in FIG. 5, a plurality of the collars will be within the bore. Also, the series of locking collars extends over a suflicient intermediate part of the length of the shackle that some latitude is permissible as to the size of loop which may be formed in applying the seal to a hasp as hereinafter explained. The free end of the shackle constitutes a non-collared nose portion 12a which is freely insertable in the bore 14 in applying the seal to a hasp.

The seal of this invention is as shown in FIG. 2 before being applied to a hasp such as illustrated, for example, in FIG. 1. As illustrated in the latter figure, the cover 20 of the meter 22, both fragmentarily shown, is held upon the meter by a split, contractile clamping ring 24, one end of which is transversely slotted as at 26 and the other end of which has an outwardly extending hasp eye 28 extending through and protruding outwardly beyond the slot 26 with a relatively close fit.

In applying the seal, its shackles free end is introduced through the hasp eye 28 and, thence, into the beveled end of the bore 14 and through the latter, thereby forming a shackle loop 12b. The locking collars 18 very tightly engage the wall of said bore; and as may be seen from FIG. 5, their rather sharp peripheries preferably become at least slightly embedded in that wall.

After introduction of the shackle 12 into and through the body 10, the latter is substantially deformed, as shown in FIG. 6, by the use of a plier-like deforming or clinching tool of the character commonly used for deforming various kinds of seals, said tool being well known to those familiar with the art relating to seals.

The mentioned clinching gives an undulant form to both the body 10 and the shackle 12, thereby clinching the shackle within the body and causing those collars 18 that are within the body to'become even more firmly embedded within the wall of the bore 14 to strongly oppose withdrawal of the shackle from the body.

It should be understood that the collars 18 need not necessarily be of the shape illustrated in the drawing, the principal requirement being that they should be capable of becoming embedded to some extent into the wall of the bore 14 when the body 10 is deformed to strongly oppose withdrawal of the shackle. However, if the collars are frusto-conical with the partial-cone bases thereof facing away from the free end of the shackle, substantially as illustrated, any attempt to open the seal by pulling the shackle from the seals body has the advantageous effect of embedding the collars even more firmly within the body of the seal to oppose withdrawal of the shackle.

It will be realized that the present inventive concept may be utilized in various other ways without, however, departing from the invention as set forth in the following claims.

We claim:

1. A shackle seal of flexible, retentively deformable plastic material, comprising a body formed with a bore extending therethrough, a shackle integral with said body and extendable through said bore, and plural, frustoconical locking collars integral with said shackle and spaced apart at a distance less than the length of said bore and having the bases of the partial cones facing axially of the shackle and away from the latters free end; said collars being of greater diameter than said bore and extendable into the latter because of the deformability of the plastic material, and said body being retentively deformable upon a locking collar therewithin to hold said collar and the shackle against withdrawal from said body.

2. A shackle seal according to claim 1, the spacing between said collars being less than half the length of said bore to enable three of said collars to be within the body at the same time.

3. A shackle seal according to claim 1, one end of said bore being beveled to facilitate entry of the collars thereinto.

4. A shackle seal of flexible and retentively deformable plastic material comprising a body portion formed with a bore extending therethrough, and a flexible shackle, connected to said body portion and having a series of integral collars thereon fixed against movement longitudinally of the shackle; said shackle and plural collars of said series thereon being extendable through said bore and being firmly clinched within the body portion when the latter 1 is deformed in use of this seal; said body portion, with a shackle portion and collars therewithin, being retentively deformable to clinch the shackle within the body portion against withdrawal therefrom; said collars being frusto- 4 conical with the bases of the partial cones facing away from the free end of the shackle and of greater diameter than said bore; and one end of the bore being beveled to facilitate entry of the collars thereinto.

References Cited by the Examiner EDWARD C. ALLEN, Primary Examiner.

RICHARD E. MOORE, Examiner.

Dedication 3,265,12G.Winfred M. Brod-w, West Orange, and Sigurd [l1 lllolwrg, East'- Orange, NJ. SHACKLE SEAL. Patent dated Aug. 9, 1966. Dedication led Feb. 9, 1972, by the assignee, E. J. Brooks Company.

Hereby dedicates to the Public the term thereof remaining after Oct. 1, 1970.

[Oyfioz'al Gazette June 13, 1.972.] 

1. A SHACKLE SEAL OF FLEXIBLE, RETENTIVELY DEFORMABLE PLASTIC MATERIAL, COMPRISING A BODY FORMED WITH A BORE EXTENDING THERETHROUGH, A SHACKLE INTEGRAL WITH SAID BODY AND EXTENDABLE THROUGH SAID BORE, AND PLURAL, FRUSTOCONICAL LOCKING COLLARS INTEGRAL WITH SAID SHACKLE AND SPACED APART AT A DISTANCE LESS THAN THE LENGTH OF SAID BORE AND HAVING THE BASES OF THE PARTIAL CONES FACING AXIALLY OF THE SHACKLE AND AWAY FROM THE LATTER''S FREE END; SAID COLLARS BEING OF GREATER DIAMETER THAN SAID BORE AND EXTENDABLE INTO THE LATTER BECAUSE OF THE DEFORMABILITY OF THE PLASTIC MATERIAL, AND SAID BODY BEING RETENTIVELY DEFORMABLE UPON A LOCKING COLLAR THEREWITH TO HOLD SAID COLLAR AND THE SHACKLE AGAINST WITHDRAWAL FROM SAID BODY. 